I’m Buying a Condo in Portland!

Several months ago, I wrote about the condo that was too good to be true. Then, I wrote in January about how I wasn’t going to look for real estate anymore, because buying a condo in Portland was just too expensive to consider all by myself.

One of the things that came from me writing that blog post is that Andi, one of my friends from the internet, who recently got her real estate license, emailed me.

“I really hated that story about your experience, and I don’t want that to make you change your mind about Portland real estate altogether,” she said.

“Let me introduce you to my friend in the mortgage business.”

I met with him, and he was cool. I even have a tiny, innocent, I know he’s married, so don’t give me a hard time, crush on him.

Then, I decided not to buy.

Nothing was available in my price range and location and “not needing a scary dog or a large man around all the time” neighborhood.

It wasn’t going to happen. Not while I’m single. Not at this price range.

Last week, I was out-of-town attending to the only business that really matters, family business. But of course, I was never very far away from my computer, and Andi sent me an email.

“Hey, so that condo you loved? It’s now FHA approved. I know you said you didn’t want to buy, but I thought I should check with you anyway.”

It was an easy choice. This condo was far and away the prettiest, fanciest, most adorable little thing I had seen. The location, while not 100% amazing, is not “scary dog” bad either.

So now, after wondering, “whatever will I do with all this money that isn’t going toward debt repayment each month?” I have an answer: it’ll go right back to debt repayment.

Yesterday, Andi came by my work to get me to sign a few more things (holy cow buying a condo kills a lot of trees!) and to get “earnest money” from me.

The Concept of Earnest Money

Earnest Money is a little funny to me. I mean, for one thing, it implies that every other dollar I’ve been spending has been frivolous. It also implies that maybe, just maybe, I was pretending. Maybe I like signing papers. Maybe I just want to see what the seller will negotiate down to. Maybe I like wasting everyone’s time.

But now, the title company has a check that says, no, actually, I do want to move in there. In fact, why not have half of my savings account? There we go. Now I’m earnest.

And now, we inspect.

“Congratulations!” people say. And really, I’m so excited. But I also want to throw up a little. And cry a little.

I like it, though, the idea that I don’t actually need to wait around for “some man” to help me afford to live somewhere. That waiting struck me as oddly anti-feminist. You know what, universe? I can take care of myself! And I get to move into something that is uniquely mine.*

Sure, my sister will live with me for six months. But she can only suggest design things. She doesn’t get to decide. I don’t have to compromise on anything.

Also, hardly anything has to be done to this place.

It’s so, so lovely.

My only complaints so far are that there is no washer and dryer (which seems silly to me —- the seller went the extra mile with a gas range and stainless steel appliances, why leave out the washing machine?) and that it looks a little like a timeshare. However, I had wondered whether I should buy a timeshare at one point, so it appealed to me.

Like a ski lodge timeshare.

As far as complaints go, though, they’re minimal. Nitpicky, even.

Anyway, as long as the inspector says “looks pretty good to me,” we will close on May 23.

And I will live there for the next decade, at least.

Which is about as close to forever as I can think these days.

The Moral of this Story

I know, without a smidgen of doubt, that I would not be buying this condo were it not for this blog. Andi is wonderful, and I never would have met her. My old realtor never informed me about the change in the financial situation of this place, so it wouldn’t have come up. Even if I’d seen it on Trulia, there’s no way I would have known that it had turned magically into something I can buy.

I wouldn’t have gotten to know Andi, either, as nice as she is. We just don’t run in the same circles (and by that I mean, she doesn’t come over to my home while I’m in my pajamas on my computer!).

The internet is a strange and wonderful place. Filled with (b)logger friends. I cannot recommend starting a blog enough, friends!

Who wants to come visit? I will have a guest room!

*Uniquely mine comes with a HUGE caveat: my parents are filled with more goodness than I could ever hope to consider and are gifting me the down payment. There’s just no way on earth I could do this without them, and I’d be doing a HUGE disservice to them if I neglected to mention just how lucky I am to be able to buy now instead of in five years (when real estate prices will have skyrocketed and I’ll be so glad I bought!). So, again, Mom? Dad? You are two of the absolute best people on the planet. I love you!

Those pictures look great Kathleen! That paperwork is just crazy, as you well know! Warren Buffett actually has argued for a one page mortgage document, but that would just be too easy for us. Have fun with the whole process! :)

Ooo that's so exciting!! It looks like a rad place to live. So cozy! I want to come over ;) I might even be able to help you move. That is so awesome that your parents are so generous! I can't even imagine living in the same place for 10 years or longer. I wonder if that will ever change? I think this sounds like a great fit for you and it's the right time and right opportunity! Sometimes unexpected things happen, because of the confluence of time, luck and opportunity! Also, good work on leveraging the blog network!

Congrats! The condo looks awesome. I bought my first house by myself when I was 23. It was crazy stressful as I only had myself to count on to pay the bills but it was also so rewarding to know I did it on my own! I decided then to never wait for a man to enter my life before doing something. Glad to hear you made a similar decision. Make sure to ask lots of questions at closing if you don’t understand something you are signing.

Whoooo! I am a fellow resident of a "ski lodge time share" haha. It irks me when my brother says it still feels like a hotel, because we've done a LOT to try to change that! I mean, if the messiness doesn't make it not feel like a hotel, what will?!

Thank you for the link love! You are awesome, and handling this process better than normal. The first time we put an offer in on a house we went straight to Olympic Provisions so I could have a stiff drink and small food. I couldn't stop shaking and going back and forth between glee and nausea. You seem to be handling it a bit better than that. ;)

I had no idea you were curious about where "earnest money" came from. It is to show you are "earnest" about your offer, that you're not pulling a home off the market that you have no real intention of buying. It's almost sad the things we have in place simply because of less scrupulous people that came before us. FYI, there are no such thing as silly questions.

Congrats! The waiting game can be tough before you officially close, but it's worth it in the end. My husband and I just closed on our house last month (we live in Vancouver) and have had a lot of fun making it our own!

Woo! Congrats! It looks amazing in those photos. I’ve for a question for you. I also happen to have some of the best oaents on earth, and they have offered to gift each of us kids some money for a home downpayment. Did you run into any tax consequences due to the size of the gift?

Congratulations! Don't throw up, you will stain the hardwood floors, or the carpet, or whatever is there. You have the best parents because you are a very grateful and lovely daughter, I hope my (maybe one day) kids are half that loving and grateful :)

Congratulations, that's so exciting! I'm impressed you found everything you wanted for the right price, and it's so awesome of your parents to help make it happen. I bought my first house in January so all that paperwork stuff is fresh in my mind! You should brace yourself for a week of stressful documentation-gathering the week before you close, but just tell yourself it's the last bit of drama and you'll get through it.

Congratulations! That is an amazing place–especially for your first place! I love how you mentioned being able to take care of yourself…you're right on the money! Enjoy every step of the crazy process and take tons of before & after pics…I still sometimes browse my albums to see how far I've come as a homeowner. Best wishes for a smooth closing! :)

It is SOOOOO beautiful and perfect and I love the lighting and the kitchen and by the way I am definitely coming to visit, whenever you say it's cool!! Congratulations. That's cool about the FHA loan process working out. I want to look into that too, seeing your success :)

That is a beautiful place, just found your site and because I love Portland, it really hit a chord! Its a good time to buy, but make sure you get a fixed interest rate, no 3-5 year arm. Interest rates will go up in the future! Congratulations!!